Living at home vs on your own

alexistexas33

Hi~

I am 23 years old and currently still live at home. I am moving out in the fall, and I was wondering to those who are moved out do you find it easier or harder to lose weight while living at home/being on your own?

For me, I initially lost 100 lbs but was making my family rather irritated at all the food I was declining. Same as the boyfriend's family - they were irritated that I did not want the last piece of cake or a serving of pizza or what not. I do not know what your family background is , but for mine and my boyfriend's they show love by feeding you. I have a guilt that if I do not eat something, then I am being rude.

That being said, I ended up gaining back almost 40 lbs recently because I kept giving into their constant 'eat this' or 'please have the last bite'. I am starting over for a (4th time), and I was hoping that while I began today, when I do move out it would be easier for me to focus on my diet away from them.

Old_Cat_Lady

Depends. Do you plan to make your own meals or eat fast food?
I have gone without fast food food and frozen foods for almost 3 weeks and have lost weight (DASH diet). I used to go to mcdonalds and get 10 burgers and stock them in the fridge. Frozen chimichangas were always in my freezer.

theWODdoll

When I moved out it was way easier. I wasn't surrounded by everyone else's food (they didn't have the best eating habits) so temptation wasn't always there. Whenever I had cravings for junk I would have to make a trip to the store to get it, and most of the time it wasn't worth it so I just ate something else at home which was a lot more healthy.

laurenebargar

Im the same age as you, I moved out when I went to college at 18, and then less than a year later moved in with my boyfriend (now husband of two years yay!) who went to the same school as me. I would say its easier to lose weight on your own but it depends on your family. My dad would get whatever I asked him to get from the store, which meant if I wanted a cake for dessert we'd have a cake. They ate pretty healthy but never wanted to disappoint me, in retrospect I realize I did this to myself and asking for those things and then eating them caused me to gain weight. I gained a little weight when I first moved in with my husband, we were 19 and had little money so pizza and fast food were easier, but as we got more settled he started cooking and planning healthier meals, recently when I decided to start losing weight I simply stopped buying the "Extras" I know this isnt exactly the same as living alone, but the same principles apply, if you are eating healthy (which is subjective and not necessary to lose weight, but you've lost weight before so you already know this) and deciding what you buy to put into your house I think you will be successful, also there wont be any of the guilt you describe earlier with having to finish something.

150poundsofme

It depends on how far away you are moving. If you are visiting these selfish visitors all the time, you will be right back in the same boat. You need to develop yourself so you can learn to say no, not feel the guilt and making yourself a priority. There are many books you can purchase or go to the library to help you become assertive in defending your own space so you can repel the food pushers.
I know someone, young like you, who lived at home, worked, and every Sunday made healthy meals for the month. Froze them and took one to work for lunch. At your own place, you can decide what to bring into your home.
If you live close by these relatives and they visit you, don't be surprised when they bring you lots of junk food and other carb heavy foods. You can serve them your healthy foods. And after they leave, if they didn't listen to you about bringing only healthy foods, then you just throw the food away after they leave. If you say you will bring the dessert to the office or give to your friends tomorrow, you will then have to deal with the temptation of it in your house.

earlnabby

You have to be mindful of the choices you make because it is easy to slip into bad habits when there is only you. It can be a big advantage because nobody is bringing trigger foods into the house or automatically filling your plate with seconds. On the other hand, it can be easy to slip into a habit of eating by grazing on whatever is around rather than fixing regular meals.

ghudson92

I have found it much easier. My mum would always make me lots of carb heavy dinners and my dad would buy me sweet snacks. Whilst this came from a place of love, it has been much easier to stay on track now I live with my partner.

midlomel1971

I'm an old lady whose been living on her own for 20 plus years now, but I think it was harder to eat better on my own as a single woman on her own for the first time. When I was at home, my mom always made dinner w/ a salad so I always ate healthy food that she bought. When I moved out, it was Taco Bell every night. Not good. But then as you grow older you'll learn to cook more and shop and you realize that eating out every night gets tired fast and $$$.

I think it really depends on what kind of diet your parents follow, though.

YalithKBK

My mom knew nothing about calories when I lived at home, so I definitely gained weight. Now that I'm on my own and prepare all of my own meals, it's SO MUCH easier to lose. It takes a little more effort because you have to plan your own meals, but overall it's easier to control your intake.

DebLaBounty

You'll be in charge of your food shopping, so that will help. You'll be in charge of what you offer yourself, and that will help.

I hate it when people say, "Eat that last bite". What am I? A garbage disposal?

MiViVe

Way, way easier. You have full control over what you bring into your home. Whether or not you have such discipline is another story, but it's all on you.

nyponbell

Easier and harder. Easier because you can be fully in charge of what kind of food you bring into your home and eat, but also harder because there will be no one saying "you shouldn't eat ice cream for dinner". So it all depends on what kind of food you are coming from but it sounds as if for you it will be a positive change, as you will no longer be made to feel guilty for not eating this or that (at least not on a daily basis!).

joinn68

Cons of losing weight while at home: less control over what food is in the house.
Pros of losing weight while at home: more regular meal times.
Cons of losing weight on my own: Actually planning meals instead of just grazing as someone mentioned already
Pros of losing weight on my own: I have the choice of what I buy what I cook what I eat.

About dealing with parents who show love with food: I lost 35 lbs living on my own but not far from my parents. I would have high calories days when I ate at their place (every couple of weeks). I just didn't eat breakfast or skipped dinner if I was having lunch there. They were happy I was happy.

Good luck!

spiriteagle99

Easier in many ways. It's easier to take responsibility for your food choices when you are the only one making them. You decide what foods are in your cupboards and fridge. You can fix them so they are lighter and less fattening. You may find you have more time to exercise without family demands on your time. You can purchase fruits and vegetables etc. that you like, even if nobody else likes them.

OTOH, it may feel like too much work to make a good meal for just one person, so the temptation is to go fast and easy instead. Fortunately, meat and vegetables don't really take much time, so if you focus on simple foods, you can eat well without a lot of effort.

One of the issues i had when I moved out was learning about portion sizes. At home, my mother would cook for the large family she originally had. As people moved out, the amount of food she made didn't shrink that much. We often ended up with huge portions and I would eat seconds or even thirds to finish up. I had no idea what a healthy serving size was. When I first moved out, I ended up eating a lot of frozen food so I could learn to eat smaller servings. With added vegetables it worked and was quick and easy. I learned that I didn't need to have a plate full, just a normal serving.

alexistexas33

Ahh thanks for all the replies. Something I need to add is that I buy all my own food, but they just add 'extra stuff' in, like my mom will make a pie and beg me to eat some with her with ice cream (lactose intolerant, doesn't stop me though).

I do NOT eat fast food, and the only things I drink is water and green/black tea.

JennJ323

When I first moved out I gained because I was alone/bored, didn't want to cook so I just grabbed something etc. After I gained close to 50lb and realized what was going on I cut it out and lost the weight (took almost 2 years to lose, but only a few months to gain!) This was a few years ago, now I'm back to losing some weight from having my daughter. My husbands schedule varies, but typically he's only home 2-3 nights a week for dinner, and I find it MUCH easier to stay on track and "be good" when I'm on my own for the night. Even when I go to my parents for dinner I find it more difficult than being alone and being able to do my own thing.

So my answer is it's easier when I moved out/am on my own for meals.

cwolfman13

Didn't have any weight problems back then, but I definitely ate healthier when I was living with my parents than when I first moved out. My mom in particular has been all about good nutrition for about as long as I can remember...when I moved out and it was just me (and then roommates), it was easy to just go get a frozen pizza or a bunch of ramen noodles, etc. Diet was pretty crappy there for awhile.

sosteach

You need to learn to stand up for yourself. There will always be situations where people try to push food and you need to decide no means no. Living alone means you no longer can blame someone else for what goes in your mouth!

Meaganinsardinia

spiriteagle99 wrote: »

Easier in many ways. It's easier to take responsibility for your food choices when you are the only one making them. You decide what foods are in your cupboards and fridge. You can fix them so they are lighter and less fattening. You may find you have more time to exercise without family demands on your time. You can purchase fruits and vegetables etc. that you like, even if nobody else likes them.

OTOH, it may feel like too much work to make a good meal for just one person, so the temptation is to go fast and easy instead. Fortunately, meat and vegetables don't really take much time, so if you focus on simple foods, you can eat well without a lot of effort.



This is my experience too. I frequently ate breakfast for dinner due to low motivation. Definiately lost weight but my iron levels dropped off too.

ladyhusker39

Some tough love here.

Unless they're holding you down and forcing the food into your mouth it's your decision to eat. Whether your gain, lose or maintain when you move out on your own will depend on whether or not you continue to blame something outside of yourself for your decisions or chose to take responsibility and do what you already know you need to do.

You have it inside you to do this. Decide to do it or not. It' entirely up to you.

Poisonedpawn78

Definitely harder when you are around other people. Especially if they dont care about their health and force you into a less than optimal choice. Best you can do in that case is make the best of whats available and not sweat it too much.

When you are on your own you have full control over everything and its far easier to plan and stick to the plan. it is also far easier to binge if you are vulnerable to it though. As long as you arent in that mindset you will be fine.

jennybearlv

I lost a bunch of weight when I moved out. It was really financial though. Instead of being surrounded by expensive snacks and convenience foods I had to start buying whole foods and preparing them myself to stay on budget. I'd make a pot of soup or something and have to make it last all week. While at my parents I could have second and third helpings because it was all free. Once I started making more and could afford eating out and buying whatever food I wanted, the weight started creeping back.

Veganniee

I moved out at 18 and although i didn't need to lose weight i did because all i could afford was wholemeal bread and peanut butter!

grinning_chick

What you need to learn is to not care if people get "irritated" at you for refusing food. What are they going to do, restrain you and put a feeding tube down your throat if they get P.O.'d enough at your noes? Smile, say "Thank you, but I'm sooo stuffed from that wonderful [___] (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, etc., etc.), that I couldn't possibly. I'd absolutely pop! Why don't you let [___] (whoever is also there) have it?"

In other words, kill 'em with kindness while keeping your lips zipped and move on without thinking about it again.